African business tycoon Aliko Dangote ready to buy stake in Arsenal

Bengaluru, July 26: Africa's richest man, Aliko Dangote, has once again expressed his desire to buy Arsenal amid growing speculation that minority shareholder Alisher Usmanov could be prepared to sell his stake.

The Nigerian businessman is reported to be worth £10.6billion and is known to be an Arsenal fan. Last August, he stated his desire to purchase the whole club and now after some reports emerged that the Gunners ownership status appears to be in flux, Dangote has suggested that he is willing to buy stakes at the club.

When asked about the report, Dangote was emphatic that his bid to take over Arsenal would eventually become a reality within the next two years no matter who keeps the higher stakes. “We will go after Arsenal from 2020 ... even if somebody buys, we will still go after it,” Dangote said.

The Gunners are, as of now, owned by businessman Stan Kroenke (70% share) and Usmanov (30% share) and reports in England have suggested that Usmanov is prepared to sell his 30.4 per cent stake. Usmanov earlier expressed his desire of buying out majority stakes at the club from Kroenke. But his bid was rejected.

Therefore, apparently after getting to know that he can never surpass power from Kroenke, the Russian has reportedly now decided to sell his shares. The 61-year-old Russian has been on board since 2007, though, is not part of the board of directors.

It is understood that Usmanov is ready to cash in on his shares, although it's reported he won't sell any to Kroenke, which has opened for a new minority shareholder.

Kroenke is not seen as a healthy investor among the Gunners as many believe the American businessman is the reason the club has not been active in the transfer market.

Earlier, a group of Arsenal fans also protested against Kroenke with banners appearing among the fans at matches calling for the American businessman to leave.

However, amidst all such speculation, Usmanov and his representatives till now has not addressed anything on recent speculation.